The Human Rights Law Centre commented on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Consultation Paper relating to its proposed International Strategy on Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery (Strategy).

The current global economic context, particularly given the huge additional challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, underscores the urgent need for greater protection of the rights of workers in both the domestic and international supply chains of Australian companies. We therefore endorse and support the development of the Strategy by the Australian Government to help address some of the most serious forms of labour exploitation in our region. This submission makes a number of recommendations to further strengthen the Strategy, relating largely to the determination of priorities for Australia’s international engagement on human trafficking and modern slavery in the region.

Key Recommendations:

1. The Government should highlight the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic as a key likely driver of modern slavery within our region and take urgent steps to ensure that companies uphold the rights of workers in their supply chains;

2. The Government should also give greater consideration within the Strategy to the links between trafficking and climate-induced forced migration and actions to mitigate against those impacts;

3. The Government should strengthen the current legislative framework for addressing modern slavery by introducing penalties for non-compliance and ensure proper oversight of the scheme via an independent Modern Slavery Commissioner;

4. The Government should introduce mandatory human rights due diligence for large Australian companies and those operating in high-risk sectors or locations;

5. The Government should improve pathways to justice in Australia for workers and individuals in situations of forced labour overseas, including through further strengthening Australia’s OECD National Contact Point and introducing a new civil cause of action for serious human rights abuses within company supply chains;

6. The Government should ensure that the Strategy more clearly incorporates the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights;

7. The Government should set a clear expectation that businesses uphold human rights standards as a precondition for receiving government support for trade and export activities and through embedding these expectations in government procurement processes.

Read the Human Rights Law Centre’s submission here.